


Freeing the Unicorn

by orphan_account



Category: The Venture Bros
Genre: Implied/Referenced Drug Addiction, M/M, Mental Health problems, Multi, its not graphic but this is an AU of The Unicorn in Captivity, so rape and non con elements
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-01
Updated: 2019-01-01
Packaged: 2019-10-02 06:32:39
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,385
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17259314
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: An AU of the Unicorn in Captivity where Rusty finds out what Brock did and goes off the deep end. Pete tries to help him pick up the pieces.





	Freeing the Unicorn

Rusty going off the edge was nothing new. Pete lost track of the times he got clean and then was back popping pills like they were tic tacs. Hell he lost track of the amount of times he himself got clean but the next week was back to substances.

Billy was a big reason he hadn’t blown their life savings on just one more bag of blow but Rust wasn’t lucky enough to have a Billy. His body guard kept him away from the harder stuff sure, but he didn’t exactly discourage his addiction problems or threaten to leave him alone in his own personal hell every time he got back on his bull shit either.

Rusty over dosing was what ultimately brought him here, it was hard to be worried when he had seen this coming watching him pop pill after pill when he thought no one was looking and last time he had seen him, he knew the next time he was going to see his friend was either in the hospital (again) or maybe finally ending at the morgue.

Luckily, it was neither, Brock had taken care of it, Rust was going to be finishing his recovery at home. 

He smiled at Hatred and even made some small talk, made some joke that his own mind didn’t even register but inside he felt empty. If he wasn’t such a coward, he probably could have made sure Rusty hadn’t gotten to this point. Something actually good friends did.

Rust hadn't been great last time he had seen him. He had that dead stare locked on him and he was too lifeless despite the uppers, half the lab destroyed, by the cuts and bruises on Rusty’s hands it was his own doing. 

“Just go away, I don’t need you right now,” was all he had said waving his injured hand at his friends. When Billy tried to ask what was going on he was cut off with a glare and a look that guaranteed they wouldn’t be hearing anything from him.

Pete had taken one last look at him before he was waved off and the last he had heard was just a ‘It doesn’t matter anymore.’

Pete sighed leaning against the elevator, with Rusty, nothing much mattered. His family, his friends, himself, nothing. Maybe sometimes it did but when he got like this, nothing was gonna matter. Pete was far from something that would matter to Rusty right now and maybe, just maybe this was all a waste of time. Coming to see him was a waste of time.

Billy told him he should wait until Rusty calmed down, he was always emotional after things like this, but Pete just couldn’t stay away. Rust hadn’t been acting like himself since…

Pete frowned glancing at the flowers Rose had given him, she wanted him to give them to Rusty somehow knowing he was closing himself off from the world. She knew more about the Ventures then even Pete did and it made him wonder if she had ever known Jonas personally, maybe a little too personally.

He was stiff and pale enough to pass off as a corpse as he stepped out of the elevator. Maybe that wasn’t so shocking, he was albino, he was always pale but he usually had more life to him then this.

Brock didn’t seem to notice a difference or was nice enough to not comment on it as he glanced up at him, watching some war documentary, nursing a drink.

“Doc is still in bed,” he said taking an even drink of his beer, “Said he didn’t want to see anyone.”

Pete considered just leaving, Rusty would probably just chuck the flowers Rose had sent him in the trash anyway, might as well save him the trouble and toss them in the dumpster a block over. Then just go home and enjoy the empty apartment, the old folks had treated Billy to lunch and a movie. No old people to berate him about being on his X Box, at his age, sounded like the best thing ever.

Brock had gone back to his show and Pete was about to turn towards the door once more when Rusty finally made his way into the scene.

His feet pounding against every step, almost on purpose, making Pete cringe and Brock’s nostrils flair a little.

He didn’t acknowledge either of them, didn’t even turn his head towards Brock, marching past Pete without even a hello and going straight into the kitchen. Brock was watching his every movement, he had that look in his eyes, he was determined to make sure Rusty didn’t do any further damage to himself, but he wasn’t about to go baby the man either.

Pete just stood there, not wanting to go deal with Rusty in his mood. He had enough dealing with Rusty in college after every fight with Jonas, but he had come all this way might as well steal some of Rusty’s coffee before making a break for it. It saved him nine dollars and Rusty could just toss Rose’s concern for his well being in the trash himself. 

He watched Brock’s documentary, noticing Brock wasn’t watching it anymore, keeping a keen eye on the general direction of the kitchen Rust had disappeared into but had yet to reemerge from. Brock was being cautious not just going in there right away, biding his time only going to act if he felt he needed to, Pete was being a coward. Almost afraid to face his friend in whatever state he was in. He stood there through another commercial break, noticing Brock seemed to think there was no danger settling back into the show. And finally sighed glancing down at the flowers, might as well just go get it over with.

He expected to be yelled at when he walked in, he expected to be given the cold shoulder, he would have been prepared for that. He didn’t know how to handle what he found.

Rusty was sitting at the counter, crying, tears just streaming down his face, eyes pinches shut, hand pressed against his mouth to keep the gulped sobs down, trying to stay as quiet as possible while he broke down in his own kitchen. He shoulders were clenched tight and his arms were shaking, looking ready to collapse under the heavy weight his emotions were giving his body.

Pete looked away, wondering if he should even bother him like this, maybe he should get Brock. 

He didn’t know what he was doing, he had never been one for comforting others but always expected that from everyone around him, but he decided to give it a try for Rusty. Nervously, he placed his hand on his friend’s shoulder, making him instantly freeze, stiffening hard under his touch.

“Are you OK?”

Rusty snorted back his tears in an almost laugh at the question, it was a stupid thing to ask. Of course, he wasn’t OK, he hadn’t been since their teleporter had been stolen. For whatever reason, that just made him go over the edge like this.

Rusty turned away from him though after that small sign of life, not seeming to want to face him when he was like this.

Pete fidgeted nervously, putting the flowers in front of him making Rusty’s lifeless look turn into a frown, just staring at the flowers.

“Rose wanted me ta give you those,” he said with a sigh, choking a little on the words knowing this was the stupidest thing to say at a time like this. Maybe he should have lied and said they were from him, maybe try to make a case for him loving his friend and all that.

“Thank you.”

It was very rare his friend told anyone thank you and even rarer to hear him sounding so defeated and vulnerable.

To further Pete’s surprise he didn’t throw the flowers away, pulling an old antique looking vase from under one of the cabinets and placing them into it.

“Do you want me ta get Brock?”

Rusty gave him a nasty look at his suggestion shaking his head taking the flowers with him as he left Pete alone in the kitchen. Alone with his thoughts, wondering what could possibly break Rusty Venture like this.

**Author's Note:**

> Self indulgent nonsense? Like usual


End file.
